Heart of Darkness Brewery has revived its International Women’s Day collaboration this year, launching seven collab brews created by female brewing professionals.
The event returns to build upon the brewery’s 2023 initiative, which featured six limited-release beers brewed by female brewers.
This year’s launch – which sees the brewery’s taproom releasing one beer daily for an entire week to extend IWD celebrations and even featured a ladies-only free flow to engage female drinkers – took a global approach, featuring offerings from breweries, suppliers and even a distillery from around the world.
“It is not fair when people say this field is just for men: I do believe women can make greater beer,” shares Phạm Duy An, QC Lead at Heart of Darkness and organiser of the program.
Duration Brewing from the UK contributed “There She Goes Plum Gose” (4.4% ABV), with Virginia Casadio crafting a tart wheat-based sour balancing plum with coriander and salt, while Fermentis’ Khánh Trang (Mia) developed “Chị Chị Em Em Elderflower Saison” (5.5% ABV), incorporating floral notes with traditional Belgian yeast characteristics.
Hanh Tran from HMG created “Fruity Femme Hazy IPA” (5.8% ABV), using concentrated hop extract to deliver tropical flavors without excessive bitterness.
Nguyễn Ngọc Phương Thảo from Pasteur Street alongside Claire Desmarais from CLS Farms collaborated on “Little Elegant Earl Grey IPA” (6% ABV), integrating tea tannins with citrus hop notes.
Coming from Singapore, RedDot BrewHouse’s Crystalla Huang produced “Rebel Rose Irish Red Ale” (5% ABV), a balanced malt-forward beer with subtle hop complexity.
Sandy Hsieh, Winnie Hsu & Dada Tsai from Taiwan’s Taihu Brewing crafted “Golden Whisper Oolong Tea Blonde Ale” (4.5% ABV), infusing a light malt base with delicate tea characteristics. 
The most potent offering came from Vietnam’s Về Để Đi Distillery, where Nguyen Lan Anh developed “Distilled The Dark Oatmeal Stout” (7% ABV), incorporating crème de cacao, crème de coconut, and coffee liqueur which are all key ingredients of her distillery’s usual spirits output.
“Brewing beer is a challenging job, but it should not be limited by gender,” shares Taihu’s Sandy.
“I’m proud to be part of this industry and passionate about what I do. I also hope to see more women join the brewing industry in the future”.
